NOAA’s Hurricane Research

April 23, 2010

Kevin Tsai

Can you imagine flying into a cyclone with maximum sustained surface winds of 74 mph (119 km/hr) or faster? Since 1955, researchers from the National Hurricane Research Project have done just that. Their goal has been to collect temperature, humidity, pressure, and radar data to improve our understanding of hurricanes. Their methods, although rudimentary by today’s standards, helped revolutionize hurricane research. [1]

NOAA also is working to advance hurricane research through the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL). The GFDL, in conjunction with NOAA’s Environmental Modeling Center, is developing a hurricane forecast modeling system that will allow scientists at NOAA’s National Hurricane Center, the direct descendant of the original National Hurricane Research Project, to generate real-time tropical forecasts. [2]

Through the application of such progressive forecasting models, scientists hope to gain a better understanding of hurricane systems and how to predict and prepare for their impact.